Romania photo of the day: Flash mob marks six years since Colectiv nightclub fire in Bucharest

A flash mob took place on October 30 to mark six years since the Colectiv nightclub fire in Bucharest. It was held on the stairs of the Justice Palace in Bucharest (photo by Octav Ganea/ Inquam Photos), where people lay covered by white sheets. Next to them, the portraits of the people who died following the October 30, 2015 fire were displayed.

The flash mob was initiated by several civic organizations to protest the lack of a final court decision on those responsible for the tragedy.

The 2015 fire broke out during a concert of the band Goodbye to Gravity, marking the release of their latest album. The fire was caused by sparkler firework candles and spread rapidly in the venue, where some 300 people were in attendance. Sixty-five people died following the fire and more than 160 people were hurt.

A journalistic investigation into how the Colectiv fire victims were treated and how they developed untreatable infections in local hospitals showed hundreds of hospitals in Romania had been purchasing overpriced, highly diluted disinfectants from a local firm, thus putting the patients’ lives in danger. The investigation was done by a team from sports newspaper Gazeta Sporturilor, led by Cătălin Tolontan.

(Photo: Octav Ganea/ Inquam Photos)